MEXICO DIGITAL

DEMOGRAPHICS
Diversity with Distinct
Usage Habits
OCTOBER 2013
Osbaldo Franco
Contributors: Rahul Chadha, Stephanie Wharton
 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Internet Users and Penetration in Mexico, 2011-2017
millions, % of population and % change
Overcoming economic, political and social challenges,
78.2
Mexico’s digital population is growing and will 73.5
68.4
approach the 50% penetration milestone this year.
62.7
56.5
For several years, young users with disposable 49.0 64.6%
income who were typically males were the dominant 61.3%
42.3 57.6%
53.4%
demographic using the internet in Mexico, and evidence 48.6%
points to that same group as the typical early adopters 42.6%
37.2%
of new technologies and activities such as instant
messaging, social media and ecommerce. But the pace 21.3%
at which other groups are joining the community of 15.8% 15.3%
11.0% 9.0% 7.6% 6.3%
digital denizens is accelerating, bringing with it not only
2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
a greater diversity of users, but also a more varied set of
Internet users % of population % change
user behaviors.
Note: individuals of any age who use the internet from any location via any
device at least once per month
This report focuses on the nuances that distinguish Source: eMarketer, April 2013
usage patterns and habits of a now-diverse digital 155097 www.eMarketer.com

audience in Mexico that more closely resembles the

overall population.

KEY QUESTIONS CONTENTS

■■ Who are Mexico’s internet users?
2 Executive Summary
■■ Which social media sites are the most popular
3 Offline Challenges Defer Digital’s Day
among Mexico’s different user bases?
4 A Profile of the Internet User in Mexico
■■ Which demographic groups are adopting mobile 5 Newfound Diversity
internet the fastest?
11 Conclusions
■■ Who is supporting Mexico’s ecommerce and 11 eMarketer Interviews
mcommerce growth? 11 Related eMarketer Reports
12 Related Links
12 Editorial and Production Contributors

MEXICO DIGITAL DEMOGRAPHICS: DIVERSITY WITH DISTINCT USAGE HABITS ©2013 EMARKETER INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 2
 OFFLINE CHALLENGES DEFER
DIGITAL’S DAY
Much has been said about the underdeveloped digital
market in Mexico and the causes holding it back, but
there’s hope for increasing digital media adoption in
the near future.
Economically, Mexico has failed to fulfill the optimistic
but well-founded expectations of turn-of-the-century
economists. Following the country’s signing of the North
American Free Trade Agreement in 1994, exports to the
US and Canada thrived, and wages and gross domestic
product (GDP) increased. Up until 2004, Mexico was
the largest economy in Latin America, with a GDP of
$760 billion, according to World Bank records.
But with the rise of China as a low-cost manufacturing
power, the economic outlook for Mexico changed.
Manufacturing contracts and jobs quickly moved to China,
and a commodities boom fueled by the Asian giant’s
expanding industrial complex and the ensuing growth of
its middle class benefited nations with natural resources
to export, such as Brazil. By 2012, Brazil’s economy was
worth $2.3 trillion, nearly double Mexico’s $1.2 trillion.
Politically, true democracy arrived in Mexico only in
2000, when Partido Acción Nacional (PAN) candidate
Vicente Fox became the first president of the country
since 1929 who was not from the then-dominant Partido
Revolucionario Institucional (PRI). But despite the change,
badly needed tax code, energy, telecommunication and
education reforms were not overhauled until recently.
MEXICO DIGITAL DEMOGRAPHICS: DIVERSITY WITH DISTINCT USAGE HABITS ©2013 EMARKETER INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 3
The effects of out-of-date regulations and the competitive
challenges faced by Mexico on a global scale—including
but not limited to Chinese manufacturing power—are
palpable today. According to World Bank data, Mexico’s
annual GDP averaged just more than 2% growth during
the first decade of the 21st century. At least two out
of every five people lived below the poverty line
throughout that period, with a turn for the worse in 2011,
the most recent year measured, when 51.3% of the
population dropped below that threshold. Unsurprisingly,
three-quarters of the total population remained unbanked
that year.
More recently, the Instituto Nacional de Estadística y
Geografía (INEGI) reported that unemployment in Mexico
remained at a manageable 5.17% of the economically
active population in August 2013. Underemployment,
on the other hand, reached 8.9% that month, and about
a quarter of the population worked in the “informal”
economy—mostly cash-based, without a social safety net
and prone to tax evasion.
Naturally, these challenges have had an impact on digital
media adoption in Mexico. A wide income gap between
the top and bottom socioeconomic levels (SELs) and
low credit card penetration have made it difficult, if not
impossible, for many to overcome an exceptionally high
price barrier surrounding internet access and mobile
services. Moreover, both industries remain under
the tight control of near-monopoly América Móvil, a
leading wireless services provider, to this day. But a
comprehensive telecom reform plan introduced earlier
this year that would ban service providers from having
a market share greater than 50% holds hope for true
market competition. If the new legislation succeeds at
lowering internet and mobile service access costs when it
comes into effect in early 2014, digital media could finally
be democratized.
 A PROFILE OF THE INTERNET USER It is worth noting, however, that INEGI figures showed
a 2-percentage-point reduction in the share of the
IN MEXICO 12-to-17 age group, while 45- to 54-year-old respondents
improved by the same amount. These adjustments may
eMarketer predicts there will be 56.5 million internet be indicative of greater internet uptake among older
users in Mexico this year, out of a total population of generations as of late.
roughly 116 million. The demographic profile of that
Adding an economic lens to assessing Mexico’s internet
online population is not very different from worldwide
users, the World Internet Project México (WIP México)
trends, with younger age groups making up the
in July 2012 found internet user penetration in the
largest share. country was highest among teens between ages 12
and 18 across all SELs. Web penetration was nearing
According to INEGI, 73% of the country’s internet user saturation among that age group in the combined ABC+
population was younger than 35 in April 2013. Young group, but the rate dropped gradually among teens in the
consumers are still the majority of Mexico’s digital lower-income groups, reaching only 73% in the D- level.
denizens, mostly because they represent a much larger (Editor’s Note: WIP México’s 2013 version of this research
portion of the overall population, where the median age was not available in time for this report.)
was about 26 years in 2010. INEGI found consumers
ages 55 and older represented a slim 4% of the online
population in early 2013. Likewise, the 35-to-44 and Demographic Profile of Internet Users in Mexico,
by Age and Socioeconomic* Level, July 2012
45-to-54 age groups both made up lesser shares
% of population
of Mexico’s internet user base—19% and 12%,
ABC+ C D+ D-
respectively—than did teens and young adults. <3 5% 4% 3% 3%
4-11 64% 51% 34% 28%
12-18 98% 95% 80% 73%
Demographic Profile of Internet Users in Mexico,
19-25 97% 92% 74% 71%
April 2013
% of total 26-32 92% 85% 64% 50%
33-39 89% 58% 38% 32%
Gender
40-46 80% 60% 34% 26%
Male 51%
47-53 69% 49% 21% 24%
Female 49%
54-70 51% 31% 11% 9%
Age
70+ 16% 10% 4% 4%
6-11 11% Total 78% 65% 45% 41%
12-17 22% Note: *as defined by the Asociación Mexicana de Agencias de
18-24 21% Investigación de Mercado y Opinión Pública (AMAI)
Source: World Internet Project, "Estudio 2012 de hábitos y percepciones de
25-34 19% los mexicanos sobre Internet y diversas tecnologías asociadas," Oct 24,
35-44 12% 2012
151865 www.eMarketer.com
45-54 10%
55+ 4%
With the exception of individuals ages 70 and older, at
Socioeconomic status
least half of all respondents across every age group in
Low 8%
the highest ABC+ income levels were internet users. By
Medium-low 41%
Medium-high 35%
contrast, only about one-third or less of people ages
High 15% 33 and older in the low-income D groups accessed
Note: numbers may not add up to 100% due to rounding the web.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía (INEGI), "Estudio
Nacional de Uso de las Tecnologías de la Información en los Hogares,
(ENDUTIH), 2005-2012" and "Módulo sobre Disponibilidad y Uso de las In total, WIP México estimated there were 52.3 million
Tecnologías de la Información en los Hogares (MODUTIH), 2012" as cited in
AMIPCI and Elogia, "Hábitos de los Usuarios de Internet en México," internet users in Mexico in 2012. The most populous
May 17, 2013 groups—ages 12 to 18 and 19 to 25—contributed
159866 www.eMarketer.com
12.2 million and 10.7 million web users, respectively, to
that total.

MEXICO DIGITAL DEMOGRAPHICS: DIVERSITY WITH DISTINCT USAGE HABITS ©2013 EMARKETER INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 4
 NEWFOUND DIVERSITY
Popular wisdom says young, more affluent
consumers tend to be early adopters of digital devices
and media, and Mexico is no exception. But taking a
closer look at adoption and usage patterns of mobile,
social and ecommerce unveils the growingly diverse
preferences of different demographics in this young
and increasingly digital country.
THE MOBILE MARKET
Mexico is the only major market in Latin America with
a population yet to attain 100% mobile connection
penetration. In fact, when looking at comparative
estimates for 2012, every research firm put the figure
below 90%. eMarketer expects this metric will reach
87.6% of the population in 2013, up from 85.9% the
previous year.
But given Mexico’s large population, its relatively low
mobile connection penetration still results in a sizeable
market that will top 100 million mobile connections this
year, eMarketer estimates.
All told, eMarketer predicts there will be 67.4 million
mobile phone users in Mexico in 2013.
Advanced Device Ownership Rising
In the past 18 months, mobile phone users in Mexico
have been switching to higher-tech devices at a
particularly fast pace, a trend that could finally set the
country on the path to internet ubiquity. According to
a May 2013 Informa Telecoms & Media report cited by
Kleiner Perkins Caufield Byers (KPCB), in a ranking of the
top 30 countries worldwide by smartphone connections,
Mexico was No. 12, with 21 million users. The report
also estimated that Mexico was the third fastest-growing
smartphone market globally, with a 43% year-over-year
improvement in 2013, trailing only Taiwan (60%) and India
(52%) by that metric.

Comparative Estimates: Mobile Connections and eMarketer projects there will be 26.3 million smartphone
Penetration in Mexico, 2012-2017 users and 27.9 million mobile phone internet users in
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 Mexico this year.
Mobile connections (millions)
Yankee Group, May 2013 - 104.3 107.2 109.8 111.1 112.2
COFETEL, July 2013 100.7 102.0 - - - - Mobile Phone Internet Users and Penetration
in Mexico, 2011-2017
eMarketer*, May 2013 98.8 101.8 104.3 106.4 108.4 109.7
2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Convergencia Research**, 103.2 - - - - -
May 2012 Mobile phone 11.2 19.9 27.9 33.9 40.8 47.6 54.5
ITU, June 2013 100.8 - - - - - internet users
(millions)
GSMA, Dec 2012 97.8 - - - - -
—% change 126.5% 77.3% 40.0% 21.4% 20.6% 16.5% 14.6%
IE Market Research Corp., - - - 107.0 - -
March 2012 —% of mobile 19.0% 31.5% 41.4% 47.3% 54.2% 60.1% 66.0%
phone users
Mobile connection penetration (% of population)
—% of internet 26.6% 40.7% 49.4% 54.0% 59.7% 64.7% 69.7%
eMarketer*, May 2013 85.9% 87.6% 88.8% 89.6% 90.4% 90.6% users
BuddeComm, Aug 2012 89.0% - - - 98.0% - —% of population 9.9% 17.3% 24.0% 28.8% 34.4% 39.7% 45.0%
ITU, June 2013 86.8% - - - - - Note: mobile phone users of any age who access the internet from a
COFETEL, July 2013 85.6% - - - - - mobile browser or an installed application at least once per month; use of
SMS/MMS is not considered mobile internet access
Note: *data is for Dec of each year; **excludes trunking Source: eMarketer, May 2013
Source: eMarketer, May 2013; various, as noted, 2012 & 2013
157236 www.eMarketer.com
162331 www.eMarketer.com

MEXICO DIGITAL DEMOGRAPHICS: DIVERSITY WITH DISTINCT USAGE HABITS ©2013 EMARKETER INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 5
Though smartphone uptake is likely to transition from Smartphone demographics in Mexico, however, are
early adoption to mass-market ownership faster than bound to change dramatically during the next 12 months,
the currently ongoing uptake of desktop internet access, as older consumers already acquainted with internet via
the mobile internet market in Mexico is still young. desktop ease into mobile internet use. In addition, droves
The typical early adopters remain the driving force of of consumers from lower SELs will likely get their first
advanced mobile phone popularization in Mexico. The regular access to the web via mobile devices. The two
Competitive Intelligence Unit (CIU), a Mexico City-based largest mobile carriers in the nation, Telcel and Movistar,
telecom consultancy, found that nearly half of mobile recently announced expansions of their entry-level
phone users in the affluent A/B SELs owned smartphones smartphone lineups in 2013 and 2014.
in September 2012, compared with 27% of those in
the upper middle-class C+ group. Looking at adoption Tablets, on the other hand, are still an up-and-coming
by age, smartphone penetration was greatest among mobile platform in Mexico. Adoption is on the upswing,
26- to 30-year-olds, followed closely by younger users with 11% of respondents in an Ipsos OTX and Ipsos
ages 21 to 25. Global @dvisor poll saying they owned the device in
January 2013. Contrary to typical technology adoption
patterns, older consumers were more likely to have
Smartphone Penetration in Mexico, by Demographic,
Sep 2012 taken up tablets, with 14% of those ages 50 to 64 saying
% of mobile phone users in each group they owned one, compared with only 9% of 16- to
Gender 34-year-olds. Females were also 33% more likely than
Male 23% males to own a tablet, the poll found.
Female 18%
Age Tablet Owners in Select Countries in Latin America,
10-15 11% by Demographic, Jan 2013
16-20 22% % of respondents in each group
Argentina Brazil Mexico
21-25 29%
Gender
26-30 31%
Male 12% 9% 9%
31-35 25% Female 5% 9% 12%
36-45 15% Age
16-34 8% 9% 9%
46-55 7%
35-49 7% 8% 13%
55+ 4% 50-64 11% 12% 14%
Income Total 8% 9% 11%
A/B 47% Source: Ipsos OTX and Ipsos Global @dvisor, "Socialogue," May 21, 2013
157735 www.eMarketer.com
C+ 27%

C/C-

D+/D/E 8%
16%
Source: The Competitive Intelligence Unit, Nov 6, 2012
147255
Similar to findings from CIU, customers of Mexico’s
second-largest mobile carrier, Movistar, “have a
demographic distribution similar to the overall population
in the country, where 36% are between 19 and 35 years
old,” said Gabriel Charles, director of new digital services
at Telefónica México, Movistar’s parent company. He
added, “This group in particular is where we find a higher
penetration of smartphones.”
A Sliding Measure for Mobile Adoption
In August 2012, the Interactive Advertising Bureau
www.eMarketer.com
México (IAB México) and Millward Brown classified
and quantified the activities of Mexico’s mobile device
users—i.e., feature phones, smartphones and tablets—
into four sophistication-defined usage categories:
elemental (91% of users), entertainment (70%), internet
related (38%) and advanced (21%). As mobile internet
users in Mexico gain experience, usage will likely evolve
from “elemental” activities, such as voice calling and text
messaging, to more advanced tasks like video streaming
and accessing GPS. The transformation of Mexico’s
mobile users into an “advanced” mobile internet user
community will likely be gradual, though, considering the
steady influx of elemental-level newcomers expected in
the coming months.

MEXICO DIGITAL DEMOGRAPHICS: DIVERSITY WITH DISTINCT USAGE HABITS ©2013 EMARKETER INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 6
SOCIAL MEDIA
At the current stage of adoption, a demographic cross
section of social media users in Mexico renders a
predictable result. Young people, particularly teenagers,
are the largest user segment by total number of users.
But when taking a closer look, research shows that both
mothers and seniors—while outnumbered in absolute
terms—may be just as digitally social as younger users, if
not more than teens specifically.
A set of studies published throughout 2013 by IAB
México and Millward Brown found that only 86% of teens
in Mexico (ages 13 to 18) subscribed to social networks
in November 2012, compared with 91% of mothers
and 88% of the overall population. (The survey defined
mothers as “women of any age who have children under
the age of 12” and found they had a median age of 36.)
Social Network Usage Among Teen Internet Users
in Mexico, Nov 2012
% of respondents
Social networks used
Facebook
Twitter
No Hi5
14% Google+
Myspace
Metroflog
Sonico
Yes
Blogger
86%
Teens who use
social networks
Note: ages 13-18
Source: Interactive Advertising Bureau México (IAB México), "Estudio de
consumo de medios entre internautas mexicanos - Segmento Teens"
conducted by Millward Brown, Aug 8, 2013
162340 www.eMarketer.com
While teens in Mexico appeared to be less likely to
participate in social networking overall, they were slightly
more inclined to sign up for some of the most widely
used mainstream social media properties in 2012, the
study found. It is worth noting, however, that this has not
always been the case. In the past four years, as measured
by IAB México, teens were often slightly less likely than
older internet users to sign up for favorite social sites
such as Hi5, Myspace and Facebook, with 95% of teens,
for example, saying they subscribed to Facebook in 2011,
compared to 100% of mothers.
MEXICO DIGITAL DEMOGRAPHICS: DIVERSITY WITH DISTINCT USAGE HABITS ©2013 EMARKETER INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 7
Despite nuances among demographic groups, Facebook
penetration was pervasive throughout Mexico’s internet
user population in 2012, and full penetration of certain
groups was not uncommon in different studies. Under
such circumstances, it is fair to say that an umbrella
marketing approach in that digital media property should
easily reach any digital demographic in the country.
Whereas Facebook could be dubbed “the TV of social
networking in Mexico”—thanks to its virtually full reach
of the digital population—marketing strategies involving
just about any other social network could benefit from
taking a closer look at the demographic breakdown of
users. For example, 69% of teens in Mexico used Twitter,
according to IAB México/Millward Brown, while only 58%
of the general population and 48% of mothers used the
microblogging service.
Hi5, Mexico’s once-favorite social network site, continued
to lose ground in the overall market. But its new gaming
focus may have caught the attention of both teens and
mothers. Among both groups, membership increased
between 2011 and 2012, the IAB México/Millward Brown
study found.
98%
69%
In general, though, mothers subscribed to fewer social
37%
37%
media properties on average (2.7) than did teens (3.6),
30% according to the survey.
27%
19% Two social sites where mothers in Mexico diverged
15% from teens in relation to uptake were photo-sharing
site metroFLOG and LinkedIn. Teen membership to
metroFLOG (27%) suffered a 3-percentage-point
reduction in 2012, while 10% of mothers said they
had a site profile there last year, up from 2% in 2011.
Meanwhile, LinkedIn did not register among teens, an
unsurprising fact given that users in Mexico must be
18 or older to have an account to the professional site. Six
percent of mothers surveyed had a profile on the network
in 2012. But it is important to remember that this group
included relatively young mothers—36 years old, on
average—with young children only.
LinkedIn usage in Mexico is fueled by users in the older
end of the age spectrum. According to Google’s annual
report titled “Our Mobile Planet”, LinkedIn ranked fourth in
social network usage via a computer among smartphone
owners in Mexico, with a 15.6% penetration rate. That
high ranking was mostly due to women ages 55 and
older, 51.6% of whom had LinkedIn accounts, the highest
percentage of any age group, male or female.
Female smartphone users ages 55 and older also Top 10 Social Networks Among Internet Users in
overindexed when it came to using Pinterest and Mexico, Ranked by Growth, June 2013
Myspace on a computer, with 49.1% and 46.3% % change vs. same period of prior year
penetration, respectively, for each property. In both 1. Ask.fm
cases, older female users surpassed the second-ranked 5,056%
demographic for usage—women ages 18 to 24—by 2. Expresate.com
almost 35 percentage points. 346%
3. Quizlet
219%
Males ages 55 and older were by far the most likely to
4. Neodata
have a Google+ account in Mexico, at 84.3%, followed
207%
by women in both the same age group (46.3%) and
5. Pinterest
the 45-to-54 age group (43.7%). But only 36.6% of 127%
all the smartphone owners polled for the Google 6. Goodreads
report subscribed to the company’s newest social 84%
networking property. 7. Tumblr
80%
One can confidently say that social media is not really 8. Scribd
the home turf of Mexico’s youth. Young users, however, 72%
may be fueling the adoption of other emerging platforms. 9. LinkedIn
According to comScore, the fastest-growing social 67%

networks among internet users ages 6 and older were
Ask.fm and contents and communities social network
Expresate.com, with annual growth rates of 5,056%
and 346%, respectively, in June 2013. Coming from a
very low user base the previous year, these tremendous
growth rates are likely in the shoulders of internet users
younger than 25—a group with a track record as early
new media adopters and which contributed 58% to the
online population last year, according to WIP México data.
10. Yahoo!
66%
Note: ages 6+; home and work locations; excludes traffic from public
computers such as internet cafes and access from mobile phones and
PDAs
Source: comScore Media Metrix, "Futuro Digital México 2013 y Tendencias
de Medición," Aug 16, 2013
162639 www.eMarketer.com
Young users in Mexico also tend to be some of the
most engaged on social media. In the example of
Volkswagen, Juan Pablo Gómez Macfarland, marketing
communications manager at Volkswagen México, said,
“The youngest (ages 18 to 24) are the most active [group]
within our social networks, followed closely by those
ages 25 to 34.” He added, “They are well informed, not
afraid to be vocal about their opinions [and] willing to
share content with us and other fans.”

MEXICO DIGITAL DEMOGRAPHICS: DIVERSITY WITH DISTINCT USAGE HABITS ©2013 EMARKETER INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 8
Social media is also the most likely touchpoint between
companies and digital consumers in Mexico, and its
importance cannot be stressed enough. According to
comScore data, social media was by far the leading online
category where internet users ages 15 and older spent
their time in June 2013, averaging nearly 6 hours per user.
Entertainment sites were a distant second, with 3.24
hours per user that month.
Average Monthly Time Spent Online According to
Internet Users in Mexico, by Site Category, June 2013
hours
Mexico’s incipient B2C ecommerce market is in
good shape, though. Growth is being supported by
an expanding middle class (39.2% of the country’s
population), a young population (26 years old, on average)
and a fast transition to advanced mobile device ownership
that is expected to continue for years to come.
Digital sales in the country will expand by 29.6% this year
to nearly $8 billion, eMarketer predicts, making Mexico
the fastest-growing ecommerce market in Latin America
and the fourth fastest-growing market in the world after
Indonesia (71.3%), China (65.1%) and India (34.6%).

Social media 5.94

Entertainment 3.24 B2C Ecommerce Sales in Mexico, 2011-2017

billions and % change
Services 2.45
$14.25
Portals 1.65 $12.92

Note: ages 15+; home and work locations; excludes traffic from public $11.40
computers such as internet cafes and access from mobile phones and
PDAs $9.88
Source: comScore Media Metrix, "Futuro Digital México 2013 y Tendencias
de Medición," Aug 16, 2013 46.7% 47.3% $7.98
162637 www.eMarketer.com
$6.16
While greater numbers of consumers in Mexico are $4.18
becoming internet users and their engagement with 29.6%
23.8%
social networking sites is growing, the migration to
15.4%
mobile internet usage is youth-led, and social media is yet 13.3%
10.3%
another component in that trend. According to Google 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
data, while daily social network usage on PCs is now fairly B2C ecommerce sales % change
even across all age groups in Mexico, averaging about Note: includes travel, digital downloads and event tickets purchased via
83% among smartphone owners, social networking via any digital channel (including online, mobile and tablet); excludes gambling;
converted at the exchange rate of US$1=MXN13.16
smartphones is higher among younger age groups, led by Source: eMarketer, June 2013
87.3% of 18- to 24-year-olds. Only 66.2% of smartphone 158249 www.eMarketer.com

owners ages 55 and older performed this activity.

But Who Are Those Buyers?
According to a February 2012 Ipsos Global @dvisor study
A SMALL BUT SOLID B2C conducted on behalf of news agency Reuters, internet

ECOMMERCE MARKET
Perhaps the category most affected by the economic
challenges faced by Mexico both domestically and
globally, business-to-consumer (B2C) ecommerce has
only recently caught fire to reach a record-breaking
$6.16 billion in 2012, eMarketer estimates, for a 47.3%
improvement over 2011. That figure, however, pales in
comparison with regional leader Brazil, where consumers
spent $17 billion over the internet last year, or the
$350 billion spent by US consumers.
users younger than 35 in Mexico were the most likely
to buy products and services online, with 26% having
made a purchase during the three months prior to the
survey, slightly ahead of the 50-to-64 age group (24%).
Predictably, respondents living in high-income households
were by far the most likely to be online buyers, with
nearly half declaring they bought products or services on
the web. Males (28%) were also more likely than females
(18%) to have purchased online during that period.

MEXICO DIGITAL DEMOGRAPHICS: DIVERSITY WITH DISTINCT USAGE HABITS ©2013 EMARKETER INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 9
Demographic Profile of Internet Users in Mexico Who
Buy Products/Services Online, Feb 2012
Mcommerce Is Around the Corner
% of respondents in each group Ipsos’ study showed a more evident gender gap in the
Gender mobile commerce category than online commerce in
Male 28% general, as 21% of men said they preferred to buy via
Female 18%
mobile phone or smartphone, compared with only 11%
Age
of women who said the same. Household income was
<35 26%
35-49 17% found to be the variable determining device preferences
50-64 24% in the nascent mcommerce scene in Mexico. Tablets as a
Household income purchasing device were twice as popular for mcommerce
Low 19% activities in high-income households, at 29%, and
Medium 37%
medium-income households favored smartphones when
High 47%
it came to making a purchase, with 26% of internet users
Total 23%
Note: in the past three months; excludes grocery products having done so.
Source: Ipsos, "Global @dvisor" conducted on behalf of Reuters News, April
3, 2012
140230 www.eMarketer.com
Already heading into the next frontier, 39% of
smartphone owners in Mexico told Google they had
A separate study conducted by Ipsos OTX and Ipsos made a mobile purchase when they were polled in
Global @dvisor in September 2012 asked internet users February 2013. And while male buyers had an edge in
in Mexico about their preferred purchase methods. almost every age range, females in the youngest group
Computers were the most popular ecommerce device measured—ages 18 to 24—held a slight edge over their
across all age groups and genders, with roughly one-third male counterparts in mcommerce adoption.
of each group citing the device as their preferred method
to buy a product. A more noticeable difference, however, Whereas young men have led B2C ecommerce adoption
was among income levels, with higher earners more likely in Mexico, first through computers and now on mobile
to prefer computers (54%) and surpassing purchasing devices, women will likely fuel future growth. Among
at a physical store by a wide margin. At the low end of women, mothers are already particularly active when
the income ladder, more internet users (32%) also said it comes to ecommerce. According to IAB México/
they favored purchases on a computer compared to the Millward Brown, 76% of mothers with young children
previous Ipsos study, which shows that ecommerce made purchases or payments via the internet in 2012.
partiality is gaining with that segment, too. By comparison, only 35% of teenagers did so during the
same period.
Preferred Purchase Methods of Internet Users
in Mexico, by Demographic, Sep 2012 Having learned the basics of digital purchasing, mothers
% of respondents in each group of young children in Mexico are now hunting for better
In a On On mobile phone/ On deals, and to that point, 22% of them flocked to rebates
store computer smartphone tablet
and promotions sites in 2012, for an 18-percentage-point
Gender
improvement in just one year, according to IAB México.
Female 48% 32% 11% 9%
Male 31% 35% 21% 13%
Age
16-34 33% 31% 23% 13%
35-49 44% 37% 10% 9%
50-64 57% 34% 3% 6%
Household income
Low 45% 32% 14% 10%
Medium 20% 40% 26% 14%
High 9% 54% 9% 29%
Total 40% 33% 16% 11%
Note: numbers may not add up to 100% due to rounding
Source: Ipsos OTX and Ipsos Global @dvisor, "Socialogue,"
148634 www.eMarketer.com

MEXICO DIGITAL DEMOGRAPHICS: DIVERSITY WITH DISTINCT USAGE HABITS ©2013 EMARKETER INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 10
 CONCLUSIONS EMARKETER INTERVIEWS
Internet user penetration in Mexico is about to reach Marketing in Mexico: Amazon Foresees Society
50% of the population. And the demographic profile Transformation with Launch of Kindle Store
of those web users is mirroring that of the general
Pedro Huerta
population to a greater degree.
Director of Kindle Content, Latin America
Amazon
Mobile phone internet adoption is on the rise. Led by
Interview conducted on September 26, 2013
young, well-off internet users who are more likely to be
male, Mexico’s smartphone revolution has begun. More
Gabriel Charles
than one-third of mobile phone users will go online via
Director of New Digital Services
that device this year.
Telefónica México
Interview conducted on September 23, 2013
Social media is a fragmented space. While virtually
every internet user in Mexico subscribes to Facebook,
Juan Pablo Gómez Macfarland
younger users dominate Twitter and are supporting other
Marketing Communications Manager
emerging social media properties. Mothers of young
Volkswagen México
children and adults ages 55 and older are now the engine
Interview conducted on September 13, 2013
boosting growth for mainstream international sites such
as LinkedIn, Pinterest, Myspace and Google+.

B2C ecommerce was kickstarted by young men, but

women are fueling its further growth. Female online
buyers are now the engine of computer-based purchases
in Mexico. Like digital buyers the world over, they now
research and compare products, find deals, use coupons
and have outnumbered their male counterparts.
A boom in mcommerce is just around the corner.
Young and well-off consumers are already exploring the
mcommerce landscape. But penetration in the youngest
age group (18 to 24) is already greater among women.
RELATED EMARKETER REPORTS
The Global Media Intelligence Report:
Latin America, 2013
The Global Social Network Landscape:
A Country-by-Country Guide to Social Network Usage
Mexico Ecommerce: Delivering Value to a Growing
Digital Population
Mobile Mexico: Overcoming Obstacles to Growth
Social Networking in Mexico: Bringing the
Plaza Online

MEXICO DIGITAL DEMOGRAPHICS: DIVERSITY WITH DISTINCT USAGE HABITS ©2013 EMARKETER INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 11
 RELATED LINKS
América Móvil
comScore
Google
Informa Telecoms & Media
Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía
Interactive Advertising Bureau México
Ipsos Global @dvisor
Ipsos MediaCT
Ipsos OTX
Kleiner Perkins Caufield Byers
Millward Brown
Movistar
Reuters
Telcel
The Competitive Intelligence Unit
TNS Infratest
World Bank
World Internet Project México

EDITORIAL AND
PRODUCTION CONTRIBUTORS
Cliff Annicelli Senior Editor
Kaitlin Carlin Copy Editor
Joanne DiCamillo Senior Production Artist
Stephanie Gehrsitz Senior Production Artist
Dana Hill Director of Production
Nicole Perrin Associate Editorial Director
Heather Price Copy Editor
Allie Smith Director of Charts

MEXICO DIGITAL DEMOGRAPHICS: DIVERSITY WITH DISTINCT USAGE HABITS ©2013 EMARKETER INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 12